BENGALURU: Birdwatchers and conservationists were surprised to spot a smooth-coated otter swim out of Anekal Lake, on the outskirts of Bengaluru city on Sunday morning. The sighting left conservationists and forest officials amazed as the lake is not connected to any river.
Mohan Bhaskar and Sharma BC, wildlife photographers and birdwatchers, were on a routine bird watching session at Dodda Kere in Anekal, when they saw the otter. “We were photographing the birds when we saw the otter swim out of the lake at around 5.30am. It’s a wonder how it came into the lake,” he said.
The news immediately caught the attention of forest department officials who are now coming to the area to sight other otters to document it. “This is the first sighting in the lake in the past 20-30 years. Though there are otters in water bodies in the city outskirts, it is surprising in this lake as it is not connected to any water body. Dodda Kere lake is connected from Bengaluru with a pipe carrying treated water from Koramangala-Challaghatta Valley,” officials said.
It is difficult to conclude if the otter came through a pipe, because of its size. Otters are part of the river eco-system and found in the Cauvery river basin, but sighting it in the lake in Anekal is new, said forest officials.